November 4, 2022

08:11

Gabriel Abreu – Amazon Agency

MANAUS – The former superintendent of the Federal Police of Amazonas and federal police officer Alexandre Saraiva said, to AMAZON AGENCY, that if invited by Lula’s government he would accept to coordinate the Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (Ibama). He is one of the candidates to assume the portfolio. In the exclusive interview, he says he is hopeful about the environmental agendas, after the period he called “environmental hecatomb” in the Salles-Bolsonaro administration.

The federal delegate suffered retaliation after filing a criminal complaint against former Environment Minister Ricardo Salles for interfering and obstructing the investigation of Operation ‘Handronthus GLO’. Six days after the complaint was filed against Salles, the federal government changed the Superintendence of the Federal Police in Amazonas; at the time, Delegate Leandro Almada da Costa replaced Saraiva. Saraiva is currently working for the Federal Police in Volta Redonda, in Rio de Janeiro.

During Jair Bolsonaro’s (PL) administration, oversight bodies such as Ibama, ICMBio, the Federal Police and the National Institute for Space Research (Inpe) suffered from a lack of resources and criticism from environmentalists due to the dismantling of these bodies. When asked if he would accept to coordinate IBAMA, Saraiva replied: “Throughout my career as a public servant, I have never refused missions on behalf of my country and, especially, the Amazon. I am a soldier available to my commanders”, said the delegate.

Fighting crimes

During Bolsonaro’s administration, the Amazon has been a constant target of environmental crimes, such as the case of the worldwide repercussion after the murder of the indigenous activist Bruno Pereira and the British journalist Dom Phillips, killed in the region of the Vale do Javari Indigenous Land, 1,136 kilometers from Manaus. During the investigations, statements made by the Federal Police show that an illegal fishing scheme is operating in the region. The delegate who has worked in the Amazon defends a coordinated work of the forces to curb environmental crimes in the region.

“To stop the chaos that has been installed in the Amazon by the Bolsonaro government, emergency measures will be necessary. Resurrect Ibama and the environmental department of the Federal Police, dismantled by the current government. I would also add to this list the fight against illegal hunting, the trade in illegally slaughtered wild animal meat, the illegal trade in chelonians, and the illegal fishing of pirarucu, because these activities are putting our biodiversity at serious risk and, as well, they can put humanity in contact with a new virus, still unknown, with consequences that can be catastrophic”, said the delegate.

Saraiva also said that he is hopeful with the new government and the new environmental policy, which will need to develop new tools to combat environmental crimes in order to preserve the Amazon.

“It is necessary to have a coordinated interagency work, but it cannot be based on punctual actions, it is necessary to demonstrate the presence of the State. We can do this with the technology and expertise that already exists. I am very hopeful that after this environmental hecatomb, which was the Salles-Bolsonaro management, that better days will come for the Amazon”, he highlighted.

Ministry of the Environment

In the next few days, President-elect Lula is expected to announce the new Minister of the Environment, and one of the most tipped names to take on the portfolio is that of the federal deputy elected by São Paulo, Marina Silva, from Rede (Network). When asked if the name of the former minister is one of the ideals for the new challenge, the delegate highlighted that there is no better name.

“Marina Silva is our greatest exponent of the environment. Her name has international recognition, and her eventual nomination for the position already sends an important message to Brazilian society and the international community that the Amazon will be taken seriously. I have deep admiration for her. I don’t think there is a better name for her”, Saraiva concluded.